I Will Rise
by axeladamgold
Summary: Adrien and Marinette had always had a complicated relationship, but when Ladybug tries to take the first step towards something more, things get even more so. Read as Adrien struggles to find balance between his life and Chat's, especially with beautiful women distracting him. Hope you enjoy! AdrienXMarinette & ChatNoirXLadyBug. Rate T for implied cursing and innuendo, nothing bad!
1. Chapter 1

This is my first Miraculous fanfic! Its a little fluff story between MarinetteXAdrien, AdrienXLadyBug, MarinetteXChatNoir, LadyBugXChatNoir. Hope you guys like it!

_. .

The Parisian morning shine bright with setting sun, casting a bright twilight glow on the city. Marinette and Alya sat on a stone bench overlooking the canal, Marinette working on anew belt design and Alya trying to capture a new background for her phone.

"You know, if we want to still have time to make those cookies for your mom, we're going to have to go soon," Alya muttered as she took another picture of the water below.

"Yeah, yeah," Marinette sighed, pouring over the sketchbook in her lap. _I just need to capture the water's glow so I can make that belt for Chat Noir. He really needs to wear another colour besides that simple black costume he has. If only he would-_

 _"_ Do you realize what time it is?" Alya pestered.

"Uh...it's about a quarter after..."

"Its almost sunset! We'll miss our bus if we stay any later."

"But I just need to-" She was interrupted as Alya grabbed her by the arm, dragging her to the bus stop. "Fine, have it your way."

"Trust me," Alya turned back and smiled. "When your mother tastes my new recipe she is gonna flip."

"Well, you've bragged on far too long for us not to taste. I mean-"

"Excuse me," a voice said behind them. "You left this on the bench."

Marinette turned around and gasped. Adrien was running to catch up with the girls, sketchbook in hand. When he finally reached them he held it out for Marinette. They stood there for a considerable time before she realized what he was doing.

"Oh, Adrien! Thank you, I would've completely forgotten about it. Not that I could've forgotten it but I would've 'cause..." Marinette's stuttering slurred into a sigh. "Thanks Adrien."

"Hey, no problem." Adrien shrugged and shoved his hands into his pockets. "And I know it's no business of mine but I wanted to ask about belt-"

"Yes, yes, thank you Adrien but we must get going now." Alya resumed her Marinette-dragging. "Bye Adrien!"

"Oh," Adrien's head slumped. "Bye."

"Why didn't you ask her about it?" Plagg zoomed out of his pocket and hovered in front of Adrien.

"You say it just as well as I did," Plagg argued. "That belt was identical to your ring."

"No it wasn't. We must've just seen it wrong." Adrien absolved. "Besides, how could Marinette know anything about Chat Noir?"

_.

"Hey Mom, we're home." Marinette called out as they entered her home.

"Hello Alya!" She answered from the couch. "I put all the leftover ingredients from today's sales on the counter for you. Let me know if you need any help."

"Of course, thank you."

"Hey, and sweetheart." Mrs. Cheng said, without turning away from her show. "I'm really going to need some help at the bake sale tomorrow."

"Don't worry, I'll be there!"

"You know that Adrien is going to be there." Alya teased.

"You don't think I know that?" Marinette blushed. "That's the whole reason why I am helping out."

"I would love to be there, but Chloe's only free time to work on that English project is tomorrow."

"Ooh, good luck with that." Marinette chuckled. "Now what makes these cookies so tasty."

"All in good time, my chef in arms." Alya eyed the ingredients with great interest. "First we need to figure out what we're working with."

"Well, alright ." Marinette grabbed a bag of chocolate chips. "Let's get started then!"

_.

"Mr. Adrien, your father has left instructions that you are to stay in your room until dinner tonight."

"Thanks Nathalie." Adrien mumbled as he made his way up the immense staircase in the Agreste's front entrance. "Anything I should know about tonight's gala?"

"Mr. Agreste wished me to stress the importance of you behavior tonight." Nathalie replied from the top of the stairs. "We are playing host to Paris's elite and premiere ambassadors and fashion designers."

"Joy," Adrien pushed past her and to his room. "More snotty rich people looking steal some money."

"Now I don't think you don't realize-" She was cut off by his bedroom door.

"Dude, what's got you in such a bad mood?" Plagg zoomed out of his pocket and onto Adrien's desk. "You're not still thinking about that belt are you?"

"It has the exact same design as my ring...how could Marinette have know the exact details and even size of it?"

"She probably found picture online." Plagg flew into the trash can below, having smelled the cheese Adrien tossed in there.

"Yeah, but I still want to see it again. I'll have to ask her about it tomorrow at bake sale."

"You call that a pastry? I've never seen anything as unappetizing as that."

"But, zir. Zis is ze best pastry ve have in our kitchen! The taste is what matters iz that right, no?"

"You baboon!" Adrien rushed to the door and help his ear up to it, recognizing his father's voice. "Your tricks have no affect on me. Now get out of my sight."

Adrien heard the sharp thuds of his father's footsteps followed by the slothful steps of what he assumed to be the chef for the dinner party. Despite his own preoccupations with Marinette, he feared what his father was creating.

_.

"There," Alya placed the final pan cookies into the oven. "We have dozens of cookies all baked and ready. We'll have to wait for them to cool before we can decorate them."

"Well should make a killing; it should really help out the children's hospital." Marinette sank into a dining room chair.

"And with Mr. Agreste making a special appearance AND donation, we've got plenty of publicity on the event."

"The only thing that could make it more popular is if Chat Noir and Ladybug endorsed it." Mrs. Cheng hugged her daughter from behind. She then walked over and grabbed a cookie from Alya.

"You don't honestly think that Ladybug will come to our little bake sale, now do you?" Marinette blushed.

"No, I don't. But stranger things have happened with those two." Mrs. Cheng stopped to take a bite of cookie. She stopped when she saw the looks of fascination on the girls face. "My, these are...well...to say it politely-" The girls exchanged worried glanced. "Fantastic."

"Oh, Mother. I hoped you would love it!" Marinette reached into her school bag and pulled out her sketchbook. "Now to get this design finished."

"Why have you been so obsessed with that lately?" Alya asked, pulling up a chair next to her.

"Oh, no reason." Marinette chuckled nervously. "I've just been on a superhero kick right now."

"Is that so?" Alya pestered. "Then where are all your Ladybug designs?"

"They're...uh...but..."

"I thought as much." Alya drew closer to her face. "You have a crush on Chat Noir!"

"What?!" Marinette laughed. "Trust me, I could never crush on a dork like him."

"How do you know he's such a dork."

"Uh...don't we have cookies to frost?"

"You win this time, Cheng."

-.

 _The pain of rejection is enough, my little akumas, for pain and self hate to grow. With your help we will be able to create a nemesis worthy of Ladybug._

 _Fly my evil little akuma. Bring hatred to our new chef friend._

*flap*flap*

"After all the work I put into tonight, and he haze thrown it away over one crushed eclair." The chef sat defeated on the stairs of the Agreste manor, hat in hand. "What I wouldn't give to prove to everyone who the best chef is."

*Akuma flies into hat*

 _Bonjour, Chef Petite, je m'apelle HawMoth. And I have a little proposition for you. I will give you the power to take back the title that you deserve. In exchange you just have to collect the Miraculous from both Ladybug and Chat Noir._

I am at your service, mon ami.

There is the first chapter! Thanks for reading. Just a little Author's note; this is going to be four chapters, each one dealing with the ships mentioned above. I might also write a little sad bit about Adrien and his dad explaining why he was at the canal, but that's for a latter date. Thanks and make sure to share the love by telling your friends 'bout it. Love ya!


	2. Chapter 2

Hey sorry for the delay on the chapter. Things are getting pretty hectic with the ACT coming up. Hopefully I have this series finished by the end of the month though. Thank you everyone for the reviews and favourites; it makes my day when people tell me what they think. Btw I wrote this before seeing the Kung Food episode so don't judge! Thanks guys! Love ya

_.

"Adrien you aren't honestly thinking of wearing that tonight."

Adrien was indeed thinking of wearing that tonight. Although Nathalie wanted him to wear his full tuxedo, he instead decided on a dark hoodie and jeans. If anyone asked about it later he could claim it was for some modeling agency. His father would probably have some words to share later, but Adrien honestly couldn't care less.

"Nathalie, this will be fine." Adrien moved to push her outside his room. "Besides I'm only going down to make an appearance."

"Oh, is that what you think?" She smirked and entered the hall. Adrien quickly closed the door behind her and took Plagg out of his pocket.

"Hey, I don't think it's a good idea if you come tonight."

"What?" Plagg flew down and sulked on the bed. "You want Chat Noir to go to a party, where we know your father will be, without a kwami?!"

"Yeah," Adrien rubbed the back of his head, "I just have had a lot on my mind lately, and I don't think having a voice in my head all night would help."

"I see how it is." The little black cat dashed underneath the pillow.

"Don't be like that, Plagg. You know I've had some extra Camembert ordered for you tonight."

"Bad feelings, gone." He poked his head out from his hiding spot. "But seriously are you sure you'll be okay tonight?"

"It'll be fine." Adrien winked at his partner. "Besides, what could go wrong."

"Alya, do you think the cookies will be cooled off by now?"

"We can probably start frosting now, if that's what you meant."

The girls rose from the table and made their way into the kitchen. Alya grabbed the bag of frosting and squeezed some of it into a bowl. After mixing in several batches of colors, the girls had an impressive arsenal to take down the mountain of cookies in front of them. They began with simple colors and designs but it quickly evolved into an intense competition. Alya created an almost 3-D phone, followed by Marinette's faux realistic portraits of Alya and herself, leading to increasingly impressive creations. The bout finally ended when Marinette created a duo of cookies with identical likeness to those of Ladybug and Chat Noir, which Alya combated with a villain chibi of Lady WiFi.

"Mom, we need some help deciding who has the better cookie."

"Hush Marinette, there's something going on at the Agreste Mansion."

"Yeah, it's some stupid fake charity dinner." Alya recalled, flipping her hair over her shoulder. "Adrien was complaining about it earlier."

"No it's more than that." Mrs. Cheng beckoned the adolescent chefs into the living room. "There seems to be some sort of fire."

"No way, the Agrestes' have the best defense systems in the world." Marinette sat next to her mother.

"It seems that there was some incident with a chef earlier, authorities are trying to break down the half-melted doors." The news reporter said, standing in front of the smoking building. "We've been told that no one has escaped the flames, and until the flames cool, we will not know of any survivors."

"Someone needs to do something?"

"Like what Marinette?" Alya placed her hand on her friend's shoulder. "Call Ladybug to go play firefighter for a day?"

"No, I just mean-" Marinette buried her head into her mom's shoulder.

"You're worried about Adrien aren't you?"

"I...need to use the restroom." Marinette jumped up and ran into the bathroom. She pulled Tikki out of her pocket. "We need to get to the mansion."

"Are you doing this just to help Adrien? It's gonna be really dangerous Marinette."

"No, Tikki." Marinette pushed her hair behind her ear. "Ladybug's job is to protect, and I can't exactly do that from my couch. Tikki spots on!" She transformed and quickly jumped out the window, in the direction of the attack.

*Flashback to just before the party*

"Now that you're comfortable, can I go down now?" Adrien gazed down at the pile of cheese amassed on his bed.

"It's all good here." Plagg popped up with a piece of Camembert in his paws. "Go enjoy the party, dude."

"Thanks, Plagg." Adrien turned and walked out the door. Before he even reached the stair landing, he could hear the orchestra playing below. He walked to the balcony and gazed down at countless couples dancing a slow waltz. Adrien spotted Nathalie intently looking at him from the corner, a glass of champagne in her hand. She nodded to the cellist in the opposite corner, who quickly conducted his fellow musicians into silence.

"Attention, ladies and gentlemen," Nathalie announced, taking advantage of the audience's attention. "May I present the patron for tonight's gala, Adrien Agreste?"

A polite applause emerged from the guests, many of whom returned to drinking and talking. Adrien blushed at the attention and descended the stairs to meet Nathalie.

"Patron of the gala?" Adrien questioned. "Isn't that usually my father's title."

"In normal circumstances, yes." Nathalie adjusted her steel-framed glasses. "Tonight, however, Mr. Agreste has named you tonight's benefactor. No don't dally; you have many important people to meet."

"But I don't-" Adrien was interrupted by his first couple of the evening. "Good evening, Messrs. Thank you for coming."

So the polite courtesies continued for more than an hour. Normally Adrien hid in his father's shadow at parties like this, only emerging when he wanted to present the Agresten heir. He finally exhausted and excused himself to get a drink. Adrien regretted leaving Plagg upstairs, but it was good to distract himself with social constraints. He had almost reached the drinks table when a crash of glass and screams were heard behind him. He turned on his heels to see a massive floating figure floating in from the smashed front window. He was dress all in black with purple lining on his entire outfit. The only bright color was a massive culmination of flames emanating from his hat.

"Hello, to everyone at tonight's dinner party." He called down, waving a gloved hand to the crowd. "My name is Le Petite Chef, and I do apologize for the lack of dinner tonight. Unfortunately, a certain supporter of tonight's gala decided that my meals were not up to code. Now we'll see how he'll react under the heat of my power."

He floated lazily to the center of the room and turned to the front door. An immense light grew from his fingertips and flew towards the front entrance. The entirety of the massive metal doors instantly fused together, completely sealing the party from the outside world. He further melted the windows into a mess of metal and glass, and finished by incinerating the grand staircase behind him. "I'm sorry this is an invitation only party, and after all, I invite Gabriel Agreste to face me for his crime."

The worried guests backed into the drinks corner, protecting themselves from the growing heat from both the stairs and the door. Chef was laughing from his air-position, but it soon dissipated.

"Where is Gabriel Agreste?" He called looking with more anger than curiosity. "He was due for tonight, no?"

"I beg your pardon, but Mr. Agreste has had no part in tonight's party," Nathalie gestured to the young Agreste, "His son is the patron of tonight."

"Then I do hope that he won't mind if I hold this Adrien for my dismissal." The Chef extended his hand a tendril of flame leaped through the crown. They gasped as it scorched their formal wear, similarly to Adrien's when it circled around his torso. He expected it to instantly burn him, but it instead made him just uncomfortably warm; it pulled him towards the akumatized victim.

"Now let me show you just what I mean." Adrien braced himself, but the impact never came. He opened his eyes and saw more tendrils of red light wrapping around his guests. Each time it touched someone, they exploded in a shower of sparks. It didn't look like they had actually died, but rather disappear as with most of the other affects akumas had on humans. Soon almost half of the guests had been vaporized, with the rest fleeing rapidly for cover. "Who's the sous-chef now?"

Adrien struggled against his grip, but knew even Chat Noir would struggle against an akumas strength. Even if he could somehow make his way up to his room, Ladybug was nowhere in sight. And even if she heard about what was happening, there was no way to make it into the home. He was so caught in thought Adrien didn't notice that the Chef was slowly moving him towards the flames.

"And now to show an Agreste what it's like to be burned." Adrien could feel the heat drawing closer, and then nothing at all. He felt a flying sensation and then toppled in the ground. He rolled several times over the glass-strewn tile before coming to a stop. He sat up and gazed at the floating cook, and…some sort of red thing flying past him. Adrien's vision was still blurry from his fall, and he wasn't quite sure what was happening. The last thing he saw before he blacked out was a shout from the red thing and a glow of ruby light.

While Chat took a cat nap, Ladybug was busy with a flaming akuma. She had already kicked his arm, knocking whatever poor citizen in its grip to the floor below. She now stood yo-yo in hand and gazed up. The Chef was gathering more tendrils of heat in his hands. Ladybug glanced around for something to combat the flames, but there was a surprising lack of safety features in the mansion. She dodged attack after attack, not seeing any way to tackle this villain. She decided there was no other choice but to use her ultimate weapon.

"Lucky Charm!"

An explosion of ladybugs overhead released a matchbox into her hands.

"I knew fighting fire with fire was popular, but how are you supposed to make it work?" She ducked beneath another tendril before analyzing her surroundings. She say the burning stairs, but there didn't seem to be any smoke rising in the air. Whatever power this akuma had no power to actually create smoke. She looked up and saw that far above was a series of sprinklers on the ceiling. She jumped over the next attack and into the air, using the Chef as a springboard she flew towards the ceiling. Striking a match she held it next to one of the sprinklers before falling to the ground. Immediately water poured down and doused most of the remaining fire. Ladybug landed on her feet and ran to relieve the soaked sautéer from his monstrous hat. She ripped a seam and exposed the akuma hiding within. After using her miraculous to clean the room and return all the guests, she ran over to the injured civilian. She turned him over onto his back and noticed that it was Adrien.

"Oh, Adrien…Please wake up." She gently tapped his face, until his eyes fluttered open. Unfortunately for them, Ladybug's magic only worked on damage done by the akuma, not by voluntarily soaking the mansion. Water dripped from her face to his, blurring his vision even more.

"Adrien, are you alright?"

"Ah…yeah, I think so." He shakily sat up, his vision slowly returning. "Wait a minute, you're Ladybug."

"Don't worry about that," Chat Noir's crush shrugged off his surprise. "Oh my gosh, you're bleeding."

"It's fine just take me up to my room, I've got medical supplies in there."

"Why do you have medicine in your room?" Asked Ladybug, shouldering Adrien on his unsteady feet.

"Oh, I'm just…very…accident prone."

"…"

Ladybug said nothing but struggled to hoist Adrien up the stairs; half of her freaking out that she just saved Adrien's life, and the other half focused solely on getting out of there. Even though she just used her miraculous, she only had two spots left before she would transform. That should be plenty of time to get Adrien up to his room and all fixed up. When they finally entered his room, she threw him onto his enormous bed. She was about to ask where the supplies where when a terrible scent flew into her.

"What is that awful smell?" She asked, holding her hand to her nose.

"It's just camembert," Adrien reached under his mattress and pulled out a small box with a cross on it, "I sometimes have it as a snack after school."

"I don't know how you stand it. I can barely handle some of the herbs my mom puts in her-" Marinette closed her mouth, determined not to reveal anything about her home life. "Never mind. Let's get you patched up."

Marinette had always been very skillful with a needle, so stitching up some of Adrien's cuts took no time at all. It was the light scrapes on his hands that she was most worried about. She dabbed some alcohol on them, but still told him to wrap them until they healed. It wasn't until after she checked every cut that she realized that she was still holding his hands.

"Sorry, sorry," She exclaimed, quickly crossing her arms.

"No need to be sorry." Adrien whispered. "It was actually…kinda nice."

He unfolded her arms and took her gloved hands into his. They gazed into each other's eyes, neither one of them sure where this was going.

 _If I am going to tell Ladybug how I feel, I might as well do it as some random teenager; better that than as her partner._

"Ladybug, I just want to say that…I really…that is-I mean-" Adrien fumbled for the right words. He kept stuttering even as a small pressure on his back forced him closer to her. He tried to resist but Plagg eventually pushed him until his was millimeters from Ladybug's face. He blushed and slightly puckered his lips, before a loud beeping interrupted the moment.

"Oh, crap," Ladybug exclaimed, cupping her ear in her hand. "Adrien…I get what you mean but we'll have to do this another time…what's the quickest way out of here?"

"Out the window, it's how I sneak out half the time." Adrien sighed as Ladybug thanked him and swung out the window on her yoyo. He had been so close too, if not for that stupid transformation time limit. He collapsed back onto his bed and held his hands above him. The hands that Ladybug held, that she fixed-and he had almost kissed her-

"Darnit Plagg," Adrien let his arms fall to his side. "If neither Chat Noir nor I can tell her how I feel, how will she ever know I even exist?"

Marinette sat transformed on the roof of her home, trying to calm herself down. Adrien…THE Adrien had almost kissed her. No, that isn't right. He tried to kiss Ladybug. But still, she was seconds away from her first kiss, even if it was under duress and pain. All she could think of were those beautiful, piercing green eyes looking so endearingly at her.

Why couldn't Adrien look at Marinette like that?

_.


	3. Chapter 3

Hey guys! Thanks so much for the reviews, I'm glad you're liking this. So like almost everything else I do, I've decided to extend the plot, sorta kinda. This will end with the next chapter but I am **for sure** gonna right a prequel as well as maybe a couple sequels. I just love the base I've set up here and want to continue with it. Hope you like it!

_.

Marinette sat with her legs clutched to her chest, shivering in the cold night breeze but not wanting to go in just yet. She, or rather, Ladybug had been inches from her first kiss and she had ran away from it at the last moment. The was nothing more infuriating than having it dangled in front of her only to have it swooped away.

"Tikki, why do we have to keep my identity a secret."

The small kwami flew out of her purse and landed on her knee. "It's always important that the Ladybug is seen as some far off superhero. If HawkMoth ever found out who his enemy was underneath the mask, he could specifically akumatized her."

"Wait Tikki!" Marinette's eyes widened in surprise. "Are you telling me that I could become a victim of an akuma?"

"Well, yes and no." Tikki shifted uncomfortably, "If you had strong enough negative feelings that could break the protection that being Ladybug gives you, you could become a supercharged supervillain."

"Doesn't that mean that Chat Noir has a hidden life?"

"Marinette," Tikki shivered. "You can't get close to him. It would be disastrous, for both him and you. Can we please get inside, I'll freeze if we stay out here any longer."

"Oh, I'm so sorry Tikki," Marinette scooped up her confidant and held her in closed palms, "Let's get you all warmed up."

_.

"Plagg, why can't I just tell her how I feel?"

"Uh, I'm pretty sure you've told almost every time you see her, "milady." The kwami said, happily chewing on a mound of cheese while Adrien laid on his bed, hours after Ladybug had left.

"No, it's not the same." He shifted over onto his side and stared at the little black cat. "That's Chat speaking, not me…Adrien needs to tell her how he feels."

"Dude, even I know that's a bad idea. Whenever the miraculous wielders have any romantic relationships, it ends badly." Plagg swallowed and glared at Adrien. "Trust me."

"Plagg…I love her. I'm not sure that's just something I can hide from her."

"I won't stop you, but don't say I didn't warn you."

"I know," Adrien looked back up towards his ceiling. "I just need one chance….one more chance to prove how much I…feel."

"Girl, where have you been?" Alya demanded, hands on her hips as she studied her bundled friend. "I thought you said you had to use the restroom?"

"I…uh…well-"

"You snuck down to see if you could find that cutie Chat didn't you?"

"Alya, how many times to I have to tell you? I despise Chat!" Marinette snuggled deeper in the pile of blankets she was buried in.

"Actions speak louder than words, and honey, boy are they loud." Alya grabbed her sketchbook from the table. "Is that why you are making a new belt for our favourite cat-boy?"

"Alya, just drop it." Marinette snapped. "I promise you I don't like him! You know I only have eyes for Adrien."

"Sure, girl." Alya smiled. "I've got to go if I'm going to be on time tomorrow."

Marinette waved to her friend as she descended the staircase before emerging herself from the blankets. She held the shivering kwami in her hand. She sat Tikki down on her desk and wrapped her in a small handkerchief. Once Tikki slumbered in her cozy bed, Marinette set to work on Chat's belt. She examined the wave design, thinking of just the best way to create it. The belt had a dark navy hue that would match well with his eyes-Those sparkling green eyes were just beautiful- But wouldn't clash with his black outfit. She set to work cutting and measuring the fabrics, and was soon busy measuring the final strips in order to sew. The only thing that was missing before she began stitching the strips together was Chat's actual waist size; but that was partly why she chose a belt. It grew and shrunk to fit the wearer, more than a scarf or anything else would. After carefully sewing all the many interweaving strands of slightly different shades of cerulean, she held it up to her desk light. The glittering cloths blended together so well that it looked like a twilight waterfront; dark, but with just enough light to see the wave crests. Marinette held the soft fabric up to her face and nuzzled into it. She thought of how best to present it to him, either as Ladybug or as Marinette. –yawn- Either way he would accept it, but she thought it might it might be best if Marinette gave her gift to him. It would be much harder to lie about how Ladybug came into possession of such an object –yawn-. Marinette caught a glance at her desktop where the time showed almost three in the morning. It didn't register how late it was until she was already asleep, thoughts drifting to those emerald eyes that were Chat Noir's.

_.

"I am sorry Adrien, there is just no way that Mr. Agreste will be able to leave right now." Nathalie tapped on her clipboard with apparent impatience. "He has three meetings and a conference call before noon, not to mention the repercussions of last night's attack."

"Oh, I see." Adrien hung his head in disappointment.

"Now don't look like that. Mr. Agreste has arranged for a private limo to grab you and Nino. Then if you so wish you will be able to pick up any of your other little friends and take them to lunch. Nowhere too popular that they would disgrace the family name, but it needs to be worthy of an Agreste.""Tell him I say thanks, I guess." Adrien adjusted the wrapping on his wrist.

"You should be more grateful than that. Your father is actually giving you a lot of trust by letting you have the press to yourself. You'll have to thank him personally when you see him-"

"If I ever get to see him." Adrien heaved his bag over his shoulder and slammed the door behind him. He felt slightly bad for treating Nathalie so bad all the time, but it was all he could do to rebel against his ever so distant father.

Meanwhile Marinette had already slept through her alarm clock and two snoozes before finally toppling out of her chair and onto the floor. She sat up with a needle stuck in her forehead as well as numerous other sewing utensils. She yawned and rubbed her eyes, flinching when she nudged the wound. She stretched, stood up, and examined herself in the mirror. Marinette was used to having these sort of accidents and was well prepared for such event. She quickly yanked it out, dabbing the dot of blood with a handkerchief. After replacing it to the counter, she saw that there was some little red candy lying near her mouse. She rubbed her eyes again to confirm it, then realizing what it truly was.

"Tikki, are you okay?!"

"Good morning, Marinette." The tiny fairy yawned. "Did you finish your belt last night."

"Yes, I did!" Marinette reached behind Tikki and pulled out the finished product, "And I'm glad 'cause I knew I'd have no time toda jpmoy because of the-"

Marinette stopped mid-sentence and stared at the clock. She dropped Tikki who managed to catch herself just before hitting the ground.

"What is it, Marinette?"

"The bake sale!" She exclaimed, quickly running to her closet and picking out an outfit. "I overslept and missed helping set up. I just hope moman could do it by herself without too much trouble."

(Cuts to outside: She wasn't, overwhelmed with the stress of dozens of people trying to buy pastries she ended up getting super stressed out and couldn't go wake up Marinette. Akuma flies into her spatula and Marinette hears the scream from her bedroom.)

"What on earth is going on out there?" Marinette ran to her window, but the crowd outside was too massive to tell what was going on. She settled for grabbing a jacket and running downstairs to join the throng. She emerged from the bakery to see that the tables that had previously been filled to the brim with desserts were overturned, and a small purple and black clad figure was racing through the throng with some sort of gelatinous blob in hand. Everything she touched was instantly encased in a small but effective casing of batter. She then placed a frosted roll inside their exposed mouth, completely silencing them. Marinette watched as the akuma circled most of the crowd inside of an inescapable semicircle in front of the bakery. The akuma exploded in a shout of rage and shot a wide and tall arc completely encircling the remainder of the civilians and cars on the road, including a limousine. Marinette ran up to the nearest person and saw that it was none other than her father, baguette in mouth.

"Dad, what's going on here?"

Tom tries to mumble something, but Marinette can't hear a thing."

"Where's Mom?"

His eyes shifted over to the akuma, eyes wide in fear.

"No way." Marinette seized it up and saw that it shared her mother's eyes and hair, but had traded out the usual white apron and top for a black dress that trimly held to her form. Marinette ran behind her, trying to find a spot to transform in. Immediately the front door of the bakery was sealed, and a cackle came from behind her. Marinette slowly turned around to see her mother standing with crossed arms.

"Everyone crowded me in an attempt to get their cookies first, now I'm just trying to teach them some manners!"

"Mom, that isn't a very good reason to glue people together in order to make things easier for you."

"I am no longer Sabine Cheng. I am SoccerMom!"

"I think you should've gone with PastryQueen, but who am I to judge?" Marinette looked past the akuma and saw Chat stepping out of the trapped limo behind him. "Hey there Marinette, looking radiant as always."

"Oh, thank you Chat Noir. You came just in time." She replied sarcastically.

"Man, that HawkMoth really knows how to pick them. Some cute chick's mom is now my enemy? I probably don't even need Ladybug for this one."

Pastry Que-I mean-SoccerMom shrieked and fired a volley of dough at Chat, but he quickly maneuvered past it. He called on his Cataclysm to make a hole in the wall, and to free many of the trapped patrons. SoccerMom ran towards him, but Chat easily flew over her and towards the bakery door. A quick swipe of his claw and the dough melted away.

"I do believe that a beautiful girl was trying to get back in here?"

"Thanks Chat, I was trying to phone Ladybug for backup."

"Wait a minute…You know Ladybug?"

Marinette gasped and gaped at his question. Most people took that excuse as one to run away, not to interrogate her about her superhero relationships. She mumbled something about having her number and quickly ran inside. She ducked behind the counter and yelled Spots On. After transforming she leapt out the front door to see Chat swirling his pole in a large circle, repelling every shot that her mom threw at him. He laughed gracefully and turned his attention to rebounding the shots against her. Eventually one smacked her square in the chest and slowly trapped her. Ladybug ran up beside him, yoyo in hand.

"Well, you seem to have this all handled, Chat."

"You know it Bagaboo." He smiled and looked back at his partner. "Would you care to do the honors?"

"As if you could." She smirked and flung her yoyo towards the goopy mass. When it returned the ball was ripped out of her hands, but there was no akuma in sight. "Where's the thingy?"

"Ew, what if it's inside of the dough."

"Gross, guess I'll have to use lucky charm to free it." Marinette threw her yoyo in the air, catching it back on the way down; it had transformed into a hairdryer. "Now how the heck does this help me?"

"Don't you have to make dough rise before you cook it?"

"You're right, if we just dry the dough we'll be able to crack it." Marinette put it on high and watched as cracks formed within the mound. Eventually it was completely riddled with cracks and Chat smashed it on the ground. It shattered to reveal Mrs. Cheng's spatula, Marinette soon crushed. After deevilizing and cleaning up the street, Marinette turned back to face Chat.

"Pound it."

"Well I guess I'm off, milady. I hope you can take care of the rest of the bake sale."

"Wait Chat, were you planning on making an appearance today?"

"Maybe," The black cat smiled and extended his pole shouting in back to her. "You'll just have to see."

"Another thing, Chat." Marinette on the inside freaked out at the possibility of seeing him out of his costume, but maintaining her cover as Ladybug continued, "Meet me back here tonight at sunset. There's something I need to give you."

"A gift from my Ladybug? I wouldn't miss it for the world. See you tonight, milady."

"Goodbye, Chat Noir."

_.

Thanks so much for reading guys! Also just a little heads up, I want to write fanfics (ships and fluff specifically) based off of songs, and the lyrics of songs. If you want me to write one for a favorite song of yours just leave a review and Ill message you when its all ready. They'll all be posted publicly unless you tell me otherwise. Love ya!


	4. Chapter 4

Hey! Just a little update for this. I've decided to just expand the Bake Sale and make it a full on series. There will be updates about twice or thrice a week, each one written in the style of an episode. I've just loved the foundation I've built and would love to explore what I can do with Adrien and Marinette's relationship and maybe even a reveal eventually. Hope you guys enjoy!

_.

"Where...where am I?" Mrs. Dupain-Cheng stood up in a dizzy haze.

"It's alright Mo-I mean Ma'am." Ladybug looked down from the sky where Chat once flew, and turned to assist the akuma victim. "You are all safe now."

"Marinette?!" Sabine pushed Ladybug away and spun around in a circle. "Where is my little girl?"

"She is fine. I saw her run inside the bakery at the start of the battle."

"Oh, okay." Sabine blushed. "Thank you, Ladybug."

"No problem, and good luck with the bake sale!" She threw her yoyo and flew away. "Bug out!"

_.

"Plagg, can you believe it?" Adrien once again sat on his bed, this time eyes eager with anticipation. "Tonight Ladybug is going to give me a gift!"

"Yeah dude, fantastic job." Plagg muttered. "Now when do I get my reward?"

"Sure thing, buddy." Adrien pressed a button on his phone and within seconds a butler appeared at his door. "I am in the mood for some camembert."

"You always are in the mood for camembert, sir." The butler politely commented, pulling a silver platter inside. He removed the cover to reveal a pile of cheese, instantly engulfing the room in its stench. "Your camembert, sir."

Plagg released a squeal that Adrien tried to cover up as his own. The butler raised an eyebrow but didn't say anything as he walked out of the room. As soon as the door shut Plagg raced into the cheese, murmuring pleasantries under his breath. Adrien watched the little fairy with interest, until a disturbing thought came into his head.

"Plagg...Ladybug said she's getting a present for me, right."

"Dude, I've already pinched you, it's not a dream."

"No, do you think she expects one back?"

Plagg slowly rose out of the pile and started with wide eyes at Adrien. "Oh yeah. Girls always want a gift...you're kinda screwed, man."

_.

Adrien requested a chauffeur from Nathalie, who arrived within minutes. Adrien instructed him to take him immediately to the mall, where he hoped he could find a gift worthy of Ladybug. After a painstaking attempt to find a parking stall, Adrien decided it would be best to hop out and search for himself. As excited as he was to be outside and without any dubious protection, Adrien was more worried about the gift than anything. He stepped into the mall and gazed around. As many department stores as this place held, he couldn't imagine finding a customized gift would be easy. Nor did he know what kind of present he should be searching for. After searching several designer clothing stores, three separate jewelries, as well as the multitude of window displays, he had found nothing that would settle for Ladybug.

"Plagg, what do girls even like?"

"Cheese."

"You know, I don't think they do!"

Adrien continued down the center of the mall, searching each window for even a clue as to where to go. Normally it was Nathalie's job to do these sort of things, meaning Adrien had never had so many options to choose from.

 _It's times like these when I really miss Mom; she'd know exactly what to get her._

Adrien was so busy window-shopping that he didn't notice the couple walking right in front of him. Within seconds, he smacked headfirst with the one on the left causing the food platter in her hands to fly into the air; landing squarely on the girl on the right, it dumped the massive amount of pasta and sauce onto her auburn hair. The blue haired girl on Adrien's left gasped and started brushing the bits off of her friend, who was laughing profusely.

"And her I thought Marinette was the biggest clutz in our class!" Alya laughed, picking a meatball of her shoulder.

"Alya! I'm so sorry, I wasn't paying attention-Are you okay?" Adrien sputtered trying his best to wipe up the mess on her jacket.

"This is nothing. You should've seen the time when Marinette spilled a sack of flour after-"

"Alya, you know I didn't mean to! If we had moved the table like I said…"

"She's always making excuses." Alya said aside to Adrien, as Marinette blubbered on. "It's kinda endearing isn't it?"

"Uh, sure." Adrien rubbed the back of his head, anxious to return to his shopping. "Marinette? Could I buy you lunch?"

"No-no tha-thank you; you don't need to lunch me buy- I mean-"

"Actually she would love that! I'm going to go and freshen up in the bathroom." Alya smiled as she walked away.

"Wait Alya, don't leave me alone," but her friend had already left.

"Really it's no problem buying lunch." Adrien led the way to the cafeteria.

"Oh…uh, thank you. Adrien." Marinette was deeply blushing, but Adrien didn't notice. His thoughts drifted to what Ladybug might like, up until he sat down with Marinette and a new plate of food.

"I know this must be awkward," she said after a few moments of silence, "Eating with a girl you hardly even know, but thank you."

"It's no problem. With my schedule I hardly even get lunch, so it's nice to sit down and eat with my friends."

"Am I…a friend?"

"Of course you are, Marinette." Adrien took her hands into his own, trying to be supportive. "What else would you be?"

She didn't answer but instead turned a deep shade of red and tried to stay her sweating hands.

"Hey Marinette, can I ask you a question?"

"Yesh, I mean yeas I mean…sure."

"I have to get a gift for…uh…this girl-"

He tapered off and put his hands into his pockets. Marinette quickly wiped her palms on her jeans and quickly returned to eating her meal.

"And…?" She asked in between bites.

"And I need some help picking out something for her." He held his head in shame. Marinette let out a small 'oh' and looked up at him. "Do you-you want help?"

"Yeah, normally I'd have Nathalie do it, but it has to be special."

"Oh…" Marinette's expression grew sullen, "Who's the special girl?"

"It's not actually for me- I mean from me- it's not my special girl…I don't have a girl. It's for a friend's friend…" Adrien chuckled nervously.

"It's for a friend!" Marinette lit up and thought for a moment. "Well, what do you know the girl likes?"

"To start off she is beautiful, like stunningly beautiful. She has these stunning bluebell eyes, so the color needs to match; but, she also wears a lot of red and black so it needs to be versatile."

"Hmmm, that's a tough order, Adrien." Marinette recognized the description, but couldn't quite put her finger on who it was. She would have to ask Tikki later. "Do you think she'd like jewelry or clothes…"

"Uh…" Adrien thought for a moment. "I'm not sure, but I think like a necklace or ring might be best."

"If you're not sure what she likes, jewelry is always the safest option."

"Like I said I don't really know her that well, my friend does but…"

Marinette finished her pasta and stood up to dump her platter. "You know, Alya is fantastic at this sorta thing. Once she gets back we can-"

She was interrupted by a buzzing in her pocket. Marinette removed her phone to ssee a single text from Alya. _Hey Im going to have to go home and change. Ill be back in a few but have fun with Adrien! ;)_

"Actually, it looks like Alya has to change at home, but I think I know just what your friend is looking for."

Marinette grabbed Adrien's hand, oblivious to his embarrassment, and led him through the mall. They passed many stores, but none were exactly what she was looking for.

"Wait, wait…its right…here!" Marinette proudly pointed, "We're sure to find something in there."

The duo walked in to the twinkle of bells. Immediately a short woman in a bright blue kimono bustled up to the front.

"Can I help you find anything?"

"No thank you, Nani." Marinette politely replied. "We're just browsing for today."

Nani bowed her head and retreated into the back.

"How do you know her?" Adrien asked as he gazed around the store. There were hundreds of small glass shelves holding literally thousands of glittering rings, bracelets, and necklaces in the LED lights. Marinette was right, there was bound to be at least something worthwhile in here.

"She's a second cousin on my mother's side…or maybe third," Marinette giggled. "I never quite know with that side of the family."

Adrien smiled and started browsing throughout the store. Among all the different designs, they all held a similar Oriental markings. Marinette was busying herself with a growing collection of bobbles for Adrien, who took the chance to pull Plagg out of his pocket.

"Plagg, this is great! Marinette can pick out the perfect ring and Ladybug will love it!"

"Yeah, sure. But what I really want to know is if you got me any cheese?"

"Hush you, she's coming back."

"Now there's bound to be a trinket in here that your lady friend will like. Take a look." Marinette held out her loaded arms to a horde of shining golds and silvers. Adrien began sorting through, discarding any dislike items on the already cluttered shelves round him. Marinette did her best to help sort out which ones Adrien's friend might like, thought she hid the best ones from his sight. Not that she was worried about competing with her; after all, Adrien said that she was just a friend of a friend. Marinette tried to think of who at their school had blue hair and wore red but couldn't think of anyone.

 _It must be one of his model friends._ Marinette thought to herself.

After a half hour of repeated selecting and disposing of all the items Marinette had, there were only a few left. She held up a massive ugly elephant pendant that Adrien laughed at as he placed it aside. Marinette smiled as well and grabbed another; a necklace with the balance symbol of yin and yang, which Adrien quickly shook his head at. Marinette sighed and slumped tot eh floor, surrounded by mounds of their work, Adrien sat in front of her and looked around. They had torn the store apart and had nothing to show for it.

"Man all of work for nothing."

"Well there is one more thing we can try." Marinette earnestly said before calling out for Nani. In an instant she appeared behind Adrien carrying a small wooden box. "Nani, you knew exactly what I wanted!"

"Oh child, no I didn't." The old woman smiled, eyes crinkling with joy. "There is a reason why I named this store the Lucky Charm. Fate shines on those who work, rewarding them with exactly what they need." She handed the box to her before disappearing.

"What's in there?"

"If it's what I think it is, it's exactly what we need. Nani keeps a secret collection in the back that she uses only in emergencies." She opened the bvox and held it out for Adrien. "Apparently this qualifies."

Adrien's eyes widened in awe at the contents. Inside was a silver polished ring in the likeness of-

"A Ladybug." Marinette lifted it out of the box.

"It's…beautiful." Adrien wasn't lying. He examined it and noticed the intricate carvings that accented the silver coordinately, creating a piece that looked almost alive. Marinette pressed a button on the side and the wings on the back popped open to reveal thin wire wings underneath the hard exterior.

"It's wonderful!" Adrien exclaimed, looking Marinette in the eye, "She'll love it."

"I'm glad. It's quite the work of art."

Adrien slowly leaned in closer and said, "Thank you Marinette. I never could've found it without you."

"Are you sure shell like it? I mean we could probably-"

"It's perfect. But would you try it on? I just want to make sure it fits."

"What...oh...um..." Marinette blanched as he grabbed her hand and slipped the ring on.

"It seemed to fit perfectly on your finger." Adrien commented, still holding her hand. "It's almost as if it was-"

"Meant to be." Marinette finished looking deep into those emerald eyes.

Next thing she knew and Adrien was leaning in, and Marinette found herself leaning in as well.

 _Here it comes, a second chance to have a first kiss…and again with Adrien!_ She closed her eyes and leaned in further and felt-

"There you two are! I've been searching all over for you." The couple quickly withdrew, each doing their best not to blush; though the amount of red in their faces was akin to a tomato.

"What's going on here?" Alya asked genuinely intrigued.

"We were just helping-I mean I was helping- him find a ring for a-a-a…"

"A friend…and we found one…for my friend…" Adrien quickly stood up, slipping the ring off of her finger, and rushed to Nani to pay for the ring. Right before he left the store he looked back at Marinette. "Goodbye, Marinette…and thank you. I never could've done it without you."

"Tell me how it goes…Adrien." Marinette tapered off as he left.

"Whoa, what was that all about."

"Girl, have I ever told you what horrible timing you have?" Marinette sighed as she watched the boy run across the corridor.

_.

"What was that?!"

"The ring or the kiss…because either way it was HOT!"

"Plagg, not helping." Adrien finally slid down the wall in the middle of the corridor, now several stores down from the Lucky Charm. "Why did I do that?"

"Well, maybe it's because-" Plagg was interrupted by Adrien's processing.

"The only person I've ever truly wanted to kiss was Ladybug…Then how come I wanted to kiss…but then…"

"Maybe its because Ladybug and Marinette are the same-"

"Plagg! I need to decide. I've loved Ladybug ever since I first saw her in action against HawkMoth…but now I have feelings for Marinette?! What am I supposed to do?" Adrien fell into his hands.

"Dude, chill. Go tonight and get the gift from Ladybug. If it's lame, go after Marinette. If you like it thought, make sure to give her the ring."

"Great plan, Plagg, I should listen to you more often!"

Plagg sighed and sank to the floor.

_.

Hey thanks so much for reading guys. Like I said I want to play with their relationship a little more, AND I have a fantastic ending all planned out. Plz review if you want more! Hope you guys like it, and I love ya!


	5. Chapter 5

Man, It's so exciting seeing all the people love this fanfic. Thank you guys so much for all of the support, it really means a lot to me. Just a little warning I decided to take things a little differently in this chapter, but it should remain true to the story arc. Hope you Enjoy!

_.

"What do you mean?" Alya smiled mischievously and helped her friend to her feet. "My timing has always been impeccable."

"You meant to interrupt that little moment, didn't you?" Marinette complained, still blushing a dark red.

"What?!" Alya sarcastically replied. After receiving a glare from Marinette she held her hand to her heart if faux pain. "I'm just thinking that your first kiss, and with Adrien may I remind you, shouldn't be in some dingy jewelry store."

"No, it's-" Marinette stopped herself and looked around. "Maybe you've got a point. It's not the most romantic scene, now is it?"

"Exactly, girl." Alya smiled warmly and turned on her heels. "Now let's get to finishing shopping. Don't you have to pick up a few more items for a certain belt of yours?"

"Actually, I finished it last night, but this little charade has given me an idea for a little detail." Marinette smirked. "We'll just have to see how smart Chat actually is."

h"What was that?" Alya had opened the door, interrupting Marinette's side comment with the tinkling of bells.

"Nothing, just talking to myself." Marinette smiled and let her thoughts drift to the night's reunion.

_.

"Plagg, I'm not sure if I can do it." Adrien stood in his room, scrupulously combing his hair in his mirror.

"Of course you can, dude." Plagg picked at a piece of cheese. "You just need to chill. It's just a girl."

"No, it's not just any girl. She is a fantastic and talented young woman who deserves the upmost respect and attention. I'm just worried that I might do something tonight to ruin it."

"Don't sweat it. Focus on what you can control and you'll do great." Plagg zoomed up to eye level in the mirror. "But I wouldn't stress about your hair, once you transform it'll mess it up anyway."

Adrien swallowed loudly, and slowly set down his comb. "You're right…I'm just glad I'll have this to break the tension."

He held up the wooden box, still containing the silver bug. He opened it and tried to fit it on his finger, but the circlet seemed to shrink upon contact with his skin.

"That's odd, it's almost as if it doesn't want me to wear it."

"You're crazy, it's probably just a lady size thing." Plagg returned to munching loudly on his camembert.

"I'm not so sure about that, it like it-" Adrien was interrupted by a blazing flash of light coming from the window opposite his bathroom mirror. He turned around and held his hand up, blocking the intense rays of light emitting from the setting sun. "Plagg! It's almost sunset, and if I'm late for a meeting with milady it would lead to quite the awful start."

"Sure, sure. But you wouldn't want to transform now, would you?" Plagg speculated, "I won't be able to hold it for longer than a few minutes, and the last thing you want to ruin your night is revealing your identity."

"For a cheese eating kwami, you have a point." Adrien posed a few more times in the mirror, but still felt unsure in his appearance. "Well, I might as well try to do my hair, even if its all for nothing."

Plagg sighed. "You never learn, do you Adrien?"

_.

"Girl, seriously, what got you and Adrien so close in the five minutes I was gone?" Alya walked slightly ahead of Marinette, leading the way back to the bakery.

"I don't know," Marinette blushed, afraid her red cheeks would become permanent if she continued to feel the heat rise to her face. "But whatever it was...it was magnificent."

"I'm just glad I came when I did, you never know what could've happened..." Alya teased.

"But still, Alya I was so close. Just a few seconds longer and-" Marinette sighed and slumped over onto Alya.

"Dang girl you've got it bad." Alya pulled her along until they entered the bakery. Mrs. Dupain-Cheng greeted the girls as she finished cleaning up from the day's sales.

"Marinette, are you feeling alright?" She asked, dusting her floury hands off on her apron. "You looked extremely flushed."

"I'm fine mamon, just a little under the weather." She lied, covering her blushing face with her hands. "I wasn't feeling well this morning and haven't really had a chance to rest."

"My dear, I'm sorry." Sabine brushed her daughter's hair out of her face. "How about this? I'll bring you too some warm egg drop soup to warm you up. Why don't you head upstairs and start a movie?"

"Thanks, Mom." The girls quickly ran up to Marinette's room, discarding their bags and homework that they ought to do before the weekend finished, but obviously cared very little about, and headed to the living room. After deciding on a cheesy romance novel the two made themselves a fort of pillows and blankets and snuggled in. Distracted only by the delicious soup Sabine made, the two enjoyed an easy night in. That is, until Marinette noticed the glowing sunset from the window.

"Hey Alya, I'm gonna go take a shower." Marinette uncovered herself from the mound off of blanlets and stretched. "Go ahead and choose the next movie and I'll bring ring some popcorn when I come back."

"Fine by me, girl." She distractedly replied, eyes glued to the movie.

Marinette walked up to her room and grabbed Chat's package before making her way to the bathroom. Although she would turn the shower on as a distraction, her true plans involved the balcony above.

_.

"Nathalie, I'm going out for a bit!" Adrien ran down the front step and threw open the front door.

"You know how your father dislikes these outings of yours right before supper time." She said, hardly looking up from her tablet. "Especially when they seem to be increasing in number."

Adrien rolled his eyes and stepped out into the warm evening air. The setting sun cast amber rays all across Paris, decorating everything in shades of orange and red. Once Adrien had passed all the security cameras in the Agreste courtyard,

"Plagg, claws out!"

After transforming he used his pole to vault up to the rooftops. He continued to pole vault and leap over the Parisian horizon. Just as the crest of the sun was setting behind the Eiffel Tower, Chat landed squarely on the bakery. He brushed off his shoulder and looked around, but failed to spot Ladybug. He turned around and gazed out to Paris, squinting in the harsh reflection of the sun on the city. Chat reached into his pocket and pulled out the wooden box. He opened it and held the ring up to the light, watching the glistening patterns swirling from the metal . He followed their dance until his gaze shifted out onto the river, with its magestic indigoes and navies dancing in the whites of light and cloud it reflected.

"You look nice tonight, Chat."

He gasped and felt his grip on the ring loosen. He fumbled for a moment before catching it just before it fell from the balcony. He quickly held it behind his back and smiled at Ladybug. "As you do...I mean as do you, milady."

Ladybug held her hand up to her mouth and giggled. She always loved Chat's flirting and quips, but after the fantastic day she'd had today she was extremely venerable to his antics.

"Thank you, my kitty."

"So-uh..." Chat searched for words that weren't there, realizing this was the first time they had talked outside of combat. "how-how have you been?"

"I've been very well, Chat."

 _The way she keeps using my name...that's something I usually do!_

"That's...good."

 _Oh my gosh, he doesn't know what to talk about...I don't know what to talk about...what?!_

"Uh, so why you came here tonight..."

"For my 'special gift!'" Chat's vanity took over and he shuddered with glee, "Where is it?!"

"Calm down, cat." She smiled warmly and produced a black paper box wrapped with lime tinsel. "It's right here."

"Milady! You shouldn't have." Chat eagerly dashed over and placed his hands on the present. he then realized what he was doing and tried to regain his composure. "Uh...may I?"

Ladybug laughed and nodded, holding it out for him. He grinned a catlike grin and tore into the paper, quickly tearing open the box. Chat intently peered at the contents and felt his mouth drop. His eyes shifted briefly to the outlying river and back again to the box. The fabric inside seemed to match exactly with the dancing water, even shimmering with withe once he held it up to the sun. He unfurled the curled belt and stood amazed at the complexity of the interweaving cloths. After examining it thoroughly he looked up at Ladybug with excitement and gratitude in his startling green eyes.

"Thank you, Ladybug. It's magnificent."

"I can't take credit for all of it, just for the concept." Ladybug put her hands behind her back in faux pride, "Marinette had the skill and materials to make it. She barely finished it today, which is why we needed to meet here."

"It's fantastic! Chat exclaimed, pretty much jumping with glee at this point. "But you know, I should thank her-"

"No, no, no. No. No need to do that. She's- uh already gone to bed."

"Now that's too bad. I guess I'll have to catch her some other time."

"Yeah, but in the meantime-" Ladybug distracted him, "Could you try it on? I-we wanted to know if it would fit without taking your measurements."

"Of course." Chat quickly slipped it around his suit, tightening and adjusting where necessary. Perhaps it was a little large for his slim figure but all-in-all was a great fit. "It's perfect!"

"Oh good. I hoped it'd fit. Now when it's exposed to direct light, it's actually supposed to absorb color, making it appear black, like so." Ladybug opened her yo-yo and projecting a bright spotlight reflection onto the belt. Everywhere it glanced became midnight black, then reverting back to a sparkling spectacle of color when it moved. "That way you can wear it during the day without it distracting from your costume-"

She was interrupted as Chat wrapped her in an enormous hug. She gasped and snuggled into his neck, until he pulled her away.

"Truly its awesome, bugaboo." He smiled and winked at her. "Hopefully you'll like what I got for you."

"Chat! You didn't need to get me anything."

"I know, but I figured one good deed deserves another." Chat reached behind him and pulled out a hexagonal wooden box, one that Ladybug recognized instantly, but how he got his hands on Adrien's ring, she didn't know. "It seems like you weren't the only one assisted by Marinette today. I had a friend of mine pick this out for me, and he says that she had quite that hand with it."

He opened it to reveal the glistening ladybug. He ignored Ladybug's gasp of recognition and held it to the tip of her ring finger. She humbly accepted it; Chat noticed that it fit perfectly on her finger.

 _How did Chat get his hands on that ring unless-_

"It's beautiful just like you, milady." Chat held it up to the moonlight. "You'll have to thank a kid in my class, Adrien. He said the one who managed to find it with some help from-"

This time it was Chat's surprise hug. Ladybug wrapped herself around his torso, pressing warmly into his chest. He took a sharp intake of air before snuggling in, relishes the way that blue hair felt underneath his chin.

"Thank you, Chat." She whispered under her breath. Ladybug then leaned up in raised heels, turning her chin to meet his. She felt his exhale grace her lips ever so gently. She instantly recognized the taste of his breath, feeling the man under the mask emerge. After brief moment of tension, Chat declined his head just enough to brush lips. They held this position taking in the aroma of the other, until the sun's warmth disappeared behind the glow of the Eiffel Tower. The moon illuminated the scene, which slowly grew passionate. Chat held Ladybug's head and slightly pushed, inclining into the kiss as much as he could. After all light had faded from the sky leaving only stars to shine on the young couple, they finally noticed the cold. The sun provided enough heat to make there air comfortable during the evening, but once it disappeared it created an abscess large enough to deter the duo from the warmth of each other. They paused only a moment to re-position themselves near the door, still radiating heat from the apartment below. With added effort they continued, until a faint buzzing interrupted them. Chat smiled gently and pushed her away just enough for her to grab her yo yo. He still held her in shelter from the slight breeze that blew atop the bakery. Ladybug glanced down and saw a text from Alya reading:

 _Hey what do I have to do to get some popcorn down here?!_

"Who's in danger now?" Chat smirked, brushing her face with light lips.

"No one," Marinette remarked, planted a kiss of her own on his neck. "But Marinette was just showering and could come up if you want."

"It's fine, I think I'm fine right where I am."

"As much fun as I'm having she deserves your gratitude, and besides I need to get home before it gets dark." Marinette leaned up on her toes and planted another firm kiss onto Chat. "I'll send her up for you."

"Do you think we can do this again, milady?"

"I think we'll be able to find some time." Ladybug pushed away from Chat climbed up onto the balcony. She turned back and winked at him before diving off the edge. Chat lunged to the railing and leaned over, but didn't see her anywhere. He crossed his arms and looked out at the dark blue sky, relishing the night he was living.

Below him sat Marinette, now transformed and relaxing in the heat of the shower's steam. She had a smile plastered to her face, and could think of nothing more than those piercing green eyes, and the salty taste of his lips. Even if it wasn't Adrien, she was still thankful that her first kiss was with someone she trusted. And sure, things might be bumpy later trying to explain to Chat that it was just a one night thing, but she could deal with that later. For now she was willing to sit and dream of her first kiss, and the magic that the night had brought to her.

_.

Thank you guys so much for reading! I hope you like the new format I've been taking with it and continue to review and favourite! Love ya!


	6. Chapter 6

Hey guys! Thanks so much once again for the support. It's awesome that all of you are loving it, and it's doing a lot to help my self confidence as a writer. I know there are a few grammar mistakes but in my defense I'm writing most of these on my phone which has the worst auto correct. I've corrected most of the errors but if you catch anything else please let me know! Sorry that this chapters a little dull, especially after the last one, but I needed to set up for what's gonna happen next. Hope you enjoy!

_.

Marinette sat on her bathroom for floor for several minutes before Alya texted her again. She dampened her face and hair, just enough to appear as if she had showered. Marinette gave Alya some half baked excuse about wanted to air dry her hair before heading up to the balcony. When she opened the door she saw Chat leaning quite comfortably on the railing, gazing out at the mesmerizing Parisian night. Marinette coughed, startling Chat to attention. She laughed as he jumped into the air, landing, or rather crashing, to the floor. Marinette offered her hand but the limber cat jumped to his feet.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to frighten you." She giggled.

"No I didn't scare- I mean you don't, didn't, scare me." Chat tried to lean coolly on the railing behind him, but his hand sailed past and ended up toppling himself to the floor.

"Are you sure okay?" Marinette peered with a not so hidden laugh.

"Yes, I'm fine! I just didn't expect to see you here so soon."

"Ladybug said to come up once I was all done, so here I am." The was an awkward pause before she continued. "Anyway, she said you had something to tell me?"

"Uh, yes. Thanks." Chat smiled weakly before realizing how lame that sounded and recovered. "That is-I love the belt." He proudly displayed it, even though it's texture blended in the nights lightlessness.

"Thank you, Chat. I'm glad you like it."

"Yeah...it's, uh...really..." Chat struggled. "Good."

"Oh," Marinette sighed. "You know...there's another gift I'm supposed to give you."

"Is that so?" Adrien's eyes lit up in excitement. "And what is this...gift?"

"It's actually from Ladybug."

Chat smirked. "Two gifts from milady in the same day, I must be dreaming."

He held out gloved hands, but Marinette did nothing to present another present to him. She asked him to close his eyes and Instead tiptoed up and quickly pecked him on the cheek, leaning into him quite deeply.

"Thanks Chat. I hope you enjoy your belt." He smiled before realizing that she had advertently pushed him to the edge of the roof, and now he was teetering on the edge of falling. She waved a final goodbye and watched as the black cat fell. Chat smiled and let himself fly through the air, catching himself at the last moment with his baton. He extended it to its full capacity, sailing up many feet above Paris. From the top of his arc he saw Marinette crossed armed on the terrace. His grin deepened and he felt the G-forces take over. He leaned towards the Agreste manor, falling swiftly through the crisp autumn air. While his body flew through Paris his soul was far above soaring closer to the stars than to the earth he was bound to. After taking a long and far too superfluous path home, Adrien emerged transformed into the Agreste courtyard. He made his way inside, ignoring Nathalie's parental scolding, and entered his bedroom. He closed the door behind him, sinking to floor with wet eyes.

"Dude, what's wrong?" Plagg flew to meet his eyes. "Didn't you have fun tonight?"

"More fun than I've ever had in this musty place." Adrien's tears of joy threatened to spill, but he regained his composure beforehand. "I just hope this doesn't affect our relationship; Ladybug and I."

"Please." Plagg scoffed. "There is nothing that could break up THAT sweet little deal you've got going on."

"And what's that supposed to mean?"

"Never mind, go to bed you love sick little kitty. You've got school tomorrow."

"Ugh do I have to go?"

"Adrien, do I look like a mother?" He cut him off before he could answer. "That was rhetorical. I won't make you go but hey who knows, you might find out who Mar-I mean, Ladybugs true identity is."

"That is an excellent point, guess I can stick it out for one more day."

_. 

"Girl you've already missed the best kissing scenes! What took you so long?" Alya sat cross legged on the couch, popcorn in hand upon Marinette's return. She didn't notice the sprawling smile pasted to Marinette's face.

"Oh trust me, I've seen some pretty good kids scenes in my life."

"Mhmm, to my knowledge your lips are still virgin." Alya tried to eat some more popcorn but missed and ended up dumpling her hands contents onto the carpet. "Unless something's happened in the last twenty minutes."

"Pssh, you know me too well." Marinette tried to concentrate on the movie but found herself drifting to those perfect soft lips, and his warmth drifting to her through his leather outfit, warming herself to the point of combustion.

Marinette survived to the end of the movie and bid Alya a goodnight. As soon as she kissed her mother and father before bed, she raced up and opened her bedroom window. She ignored the chill and looked out at the beauty of Paris. She ought to go to sleep but the nights excitement still had her riled up.

"Marinette you really need to get some sleep! You won't be any good to anyone as Marinette or Ladybug if you are sleep deprived." Tiki lectured, trying to pull Marinette away from the chill breeze, to no avail.

"Uhuh, sure thing thing...let me just..." she never did finish. Marinette dazed out the window feeling the light of the world in her heart. Before long her head slumped to the desk, thoughts on charming young men in tight suits escorting her on long romantic night walks.

_.

"Adrien," a small but powerful force pushed the young model out of bed, toppling him to the floor. "You're going to be late...again."

"Yeah, yeah." Adrien rubbed his eyes and pushed himself to his feet. He decided to forgo breakfast and instead try and get to school early. If he kept missing class due to akuma attacks, he would have to take remedial classes just to compensate, something definitely didn't have time for. He dressed and grabbed his backpack, then made his way to his door. However, upon hearing Nathalie chatting unhappily away from the door, he decided to take a different route to school.

"Plagg, claws out."

Chat climbed to the top of the window and dived out falling rapidly to the busy street below. He landed on the roof of a passing bus, using the momentum to launch himself to the rooftops. He sprinted along avenues and alleyways, enjoying the wind on his face and sun on his back. Even with the pain he felt at home, somehow this alias he used made up for it. He smiled to the sky, praising to be alive, when a sudden yelp emanated from a passing venue. Chat stopped and spun around, gazing into a dark alley between two apartment buildings. His night vision kicked in, allowing him to see a skirmish occurring between a young lady and a figure cloaked entirely in black. The theft seemed to be latched on to the pink satchel at the lady's side. Chat unhooked his pole from new belt and used it to slide down to the dirty asphalt below, effectively blocking the attackers escape as he ripped the purse away. The man thudded into Chat, falling backwards.

"Now didn't your mother ever teach not to take other people's things?" Chat smirked and grabbed the purse from the ground where the thief had dropped it. The man tried to snatch it back but was met with a swift blow to the hand by way of the pole. He winced and pulled it back into himself, only to find Chats pole extending beneath his. With a quick flick he flew through the air soaring past the nearby building and out of sight beyond the opposite shops. Chat chuckled and moved to help the girl up, who had fallen during the attack. Upon reaching out for her hand, Chat instantly recognized who it was.

"Marinette, long time no see."

She refused his hand and independent stood up, brushing off her dusted skirt. "Chat Noir, I had it all under control."

"Mhmmm." Chat scoffed. "Another minute and your little coin purse would be history."

"It's not a coin purse, it's a..." Marinette caught herself "never mind. Now if you'll please excuse me I'm late for class."

"No ma'am. It's far too dangerous for a young lady to walk the streets of Paris unprotected." She tried to interrupt him but he continued. "I will make you a promise, milady. From now on I am going to check in on you and make sure you're safe."

"Chat, really there's no reason to do that."

"No, I am bound by chivalry to aid you, starting with getting you to school on time." Before she could argue against it he swept her up in a princess carry. She pounded on his chest to let her go but he had already jumped into the air, kicking off the nearby walls to reach the rooftops. He sprinted along, effortlessly holding Marinette and leaping huge distances to reach the school. After a whirlwind of falling and pole vaulting, he finally reached the entrance of the school, gently setting her down on the front steps. Despite her hair being a whirlwind disaster, Marinette was unharmed and still had enough time to reach her first period.

"Thanks, Chat..." She smiled apologetically at him. "For helping me."

"It's what I do." He turned and ran off, but stopped just short of rejoins the rooftops to turn around. "I'll check on you tonight, just to make sure you're still safe."

She giggle and nodded before running into the school building. Chat used his pole to fly ipwards, using his moment to fly directly into an open skylight of the indoor courtyard of the school. He ducked and rolled upon landing, shooting towards the open doors of the boys locker room. After transforming back he ran up the stairs and into the classroom just as the tardy bell rung. Taking his seat next to Nino, Adrien deepened his breaths trying to calm his heart rate after the excitement. He hardly noticed the history lecture from Mdm Bustier. By the time the dismissal bell rang he had successfully calmed himself, but he could tell his little escapade didn't go unnoticed by Nino, who cornered him after class.

"Dude, what happened to you? Did you have to run to school?"

Adrien tried to make some excuse about missing his chauffeurs direction but Nino clearly wasn't buying it. He was about to tell him that he stopped to see Chat Noir fight off a theft when a well timed explosion of sound came from the courtyard below, mostly from the recognizable shrieks of a certain Bourgeois. The duo raced to the balcony eager to see what debacle the princess of darkness herself had created. Far below a trip of girls in thee grade below theirs held a jump rope clearly in the middle of a test period between classes. However due to excessive amounts of extremities coming from Chloe, it was apparent that she somehow was insulted by their fun.

"You can't just wave a silly rope around and call it fun!" She flipped her hair on Sabrina's face, still eyeing the trio with accusation. "Especially when you purposely hit my delicate shins with it!"

"Give it a rest Chloe these girl were just having fun." To Adrien's surprise and pride Marinette came stomping across the courtyard.

"You don't know anything Bake-girl. They tried to injure me! A bourgeois! And they need to be punished!"

Marinette tried to stop her but was still too far away to actually do anything. Chloe picked up the fallen rope and proceeded to rip it in half, effectively ruining their game. One of the girls burst into tears and was immediately comforted by another, whereas the final one stamped right up to meet the heiress.

"You're nothing but a big bully, Chloe. Why don't you pick on someone your own size?"

"Where's the fun in that?!" Chloe cackled and pushed past the scene. The last little girl moved to chase her but Marinette held her back.

"It's no use, little one. Chloe isn't worth it."

"Yeah, but she still deserves to get what's coming to her." The little girl ran off, tearing the two streams of rope behind her; breaking the moment of silence that held the captivated audience. Marinette longed to go after her but a comforting Alya tore her away from the scene.

"Who even was that little girl?" Marinette asked, trying to pry her hands out of Alya's grip. "I don't think I've ever seen her in any of our classes."

"She must be a student in one of the lower grades." Alya pushed her glasses up her nose.

"Do you know her name?"

"I think one of her class mates called her Grace earlier but I'm not too sure."

"Hey do you girl she know what happened with Chloe?" The two turned back to see a running Adrien and Nino trying to catch up with them. "That seemed pretty extreme even for her."

"Chloe got all upset because Grace accidentally hit her when she came out of class." Alya replied, releasing Marinette from her clutches. "But in her defense Chloe was on her phone and walked straight into their game."

"I swear one day Chloe is going to dig herself a grave." Nino said, looking behind him to see the two other girls still crying on the courtroom floor. "And I have a feeling that the akumas will be part of her demise."

_.

Just a final update for the conclusion of this series. I want to keep it going for quite some time, but I don't want it to turn into a run on story, ya know? I've got the next couple chapters planned so the next couple updates should be a bit faster. Thanks guys and love ya!


	7. Chapter 7

Hey just a thanks for everyone supporting me! Hope you like the chapter and the absolute burn that Chloe's about to get. Sorry the delay was so long between chapters; it's been one heck of a week. But it should settle down next week and I'll put out a few new chapters. Also I really wanted to make this chapter unique and so I had to edit it over and over to make it decent. Also I know there's a LOT of typos I am writing this on my phone and the auto-correct often screws up with all my words, so I apologize. They should be fixed by the end of the week (if I get any time). Love you guys and thanks for the favourites and reviews!

_.

"You're not wrong." Adrien patted Nino on the shoulder. "She's always been a little irksome when it comes to stuff like this, but this is taking it too far."

"Picking on a little girl is wrong...even for Chloe." Marinette encouraged, settling herself down on one of the benches overlooking the courtyard.

"You would think that she'd learn better after everything she's done," Alya sat next to her, hand on her phone, "But then again, maybe she's not smart enough to."

The four laughed, but soon returned to their sullen state. Chloe's antics were bringing them all down, especially when they seemed to be increasing in annoyance and frequency. While the four took the break to talk and recover, another was also trying to collect themselves after Chloe's harsh words and actions. Grace sat cross legged in the girls' locker room, silently wiping tears from her arms as she clutched the two halves of the jump rope in her lap.

"Papa always said to be nice to people like her...but I didn't think it'd be this hard."

 _The pain of loss is always a time of regret and passion, especially when it goes against a parent's wishes; but it is twofold when combined with the vengeance she will feel as my akuma._

 _*evil hand clap thing*_

 _Go my little akuma, bring some comfort to our comfortless fiend._

*flap*flap*

The akuma flies into the rope, instantly plaguing Grace's face in a moth blush.

 _TruthTeller I am giving you the opportunity to take revenge on that wretched Chloe. Use your power to extract her apology, but don't forget I will you need you to extract the Miraculous from Chat Noir and Ladybug when they arrive._

"I shall not fail HawkMoth."

_.

"Sabrina, is this the soy non-fat, gluten-free, non-liquid, flat and carbonated, no foam whipped latte cappuccino I ordered?!" Chloe held the foaming cup in her hand, waving it dangerously over her 'friend's' face.

"Sure...yeah-of course it is Chloe." Sabrina babbled an excuse before a large crash was heard from below. The two ran from their locker to the handrail and looked down to see a small figure entirely cloaked in black floating into the center of the large room. The talking of students subsided to nothing as she spoke.

"Chlooooeee. I've got a present for you!" She creepily called, letting her whip emerge slowly from her cloak.

"Oh mer gesh, I gift just for me?!" Chloe ran down the steps leaving a bewildered Sabrina with an overflowing cup. "What it is, little floaty girl?"

"A chance to come to terms with all the pain you've given your fellow students here." Grace used her whip to link Chloe's legs together, hoisting her quickly into the air by throwing her rope over a beam high above all. Chloe hung upside down for several moments in dazed confusion before the screams began. Soon Grace covered her mouth by means of the rope before calling to the gathering crowd:

"Come one come all! Tell this petty princess all of the hatred and suffering you've longed to avenge her for." When no one stepped forward, she used the other half of her rope to tangle a nearby kid and draw him near. As soon as it touched him his eyes grew dark and bags grew underneath.

"Chloe, you've the common sense of a water buffalo and the fashion sense of a grandmother."

Grace's snake sped through the crowd quickly turning them into a mob. Soon yells and accusations rained upon the trapped girl. Adrien immediately ran to the edge of the walkway and scanned the crowd below. After seeing Grace in her new look he turned and ran to the empty classroom where Mdm. Bustier had just vacated. Nino called after him but decided it wasn't worth it to miss the roast occurring below. Alya and Marinette joined him, with the latter quickly following Adrien's lead and transforming. While both had masks and suits thrown upon them, Chloe was calling back insult after insult with petty comments that left no feelings hurt. Grace's tendril swept up and nudged Alya and Nino, who jumped down to meet the Bourgeois with unprecedented anger. Alya had her phone already out, recording the whole spiel on her live-stream. Chat emerged from the classroom followed soon after by Ladybug from the opposite end of the corridor. The two jumped almost in sync to the bottom floor, catching their breath at the absolute horror of human nature. Chloe had given up trying to compete with the crowd, and let herself the insults rush over her. Ivan made fun of her weight (only slightly noticeable) whereas Mylene went after her layers of foundation (which was). Alex commented on her thunder thighs, which were none existent, and Kim attacked her brains which was also mythical.

"Seems like the sticks and stones are really getting to her."

"Chat, you never cease to astound me."

"I think you mean amaze, milady."

Ladybug rolled her eyes and assumed a weak battle stance. She quickly analyzed the situation, but the akuma's followers were still berating Chloe with hate, with each insult becoming a little more accurate and stinging just a little more. Ladybug flung her yo-yo but it was easily deflected by a flick of Graces wrist. Chat advanced on her but she quickly arced her available hand to zone him out. The rope gained a little edge every time one of the students made fun of Chloe, making the tip a bit sharper and the length just a little longer. Grace reached out and let the whip extend fully, nearly reaching touching the limber pair. Ladybug nearly sidestepped it whereas Chat decided might be best to back flip out of the way. While in all honesty it did look pretty cool, it would've been better if he hadn't tripped over himself and skidding backwards across the floor landed tail end near the far wall.

"It looks like you've lost your touch, kitty."

"Oh be quiet, bugaboo." Chat scowled as he tightened himself, just in time for him to roll to the side to dodge a direct hit from Grace. "Instead of concentrating on my *snicker*snicker* grace-full landing help me with this akuma."

Ladybug ignored his instructions (and poor pun) and watched as he performed a series of gymnastic feats that almost made her jealous. After a near perfect back handspring, he launched himself back into the corner. Grace turned her attention to the cat, completely turning her back on Ladybug. She took this advantage to swing over to the akuma, landing a kick squarely in Grace's back. The akuma fell with the blow but immediately flew back up into the air. She levitated for a moment with a stern expression a scanned the area for her assailant. Chat launched himself into position and punched her, earning a sharp crack from the whip. Chat was sent flying across the room into and opposing pillar. The column cracked, but nothing that couldn't be repaired. Ladybug flicked towards Grace, trying to close the he distance, but she easily sidestepped the lunge. Ladybug rolled forward into a kneeling stance. Her eyes darted for just a moment to the motionless lump of leather in concern, distracting her just enough for Grace to slip her rope around Ladybugs ankle. Luckily the evil from the akuma couldn't infiltrate her suit, but unfortunately it still was tangible enough to snag her ankle. Grace swung the rope causing Ladybug to sail in an arc towards Chat. She was just about to slam into the same pillar but a sudden grip stopped her just before impact.

"Glad I could catch up with you, malady."

She rolled her eyes and pushed away from Chat. Her feelings toward him remained the same, even after what had happened. She ignored the obvious look of pain on his face, mostly because it wasn't the first time she had heard it.

"The first thing we've got to do is get Chloe away from her. I'm not sure she can't take much more than this." The blonde girl was now whimpering from fear more than insult, not that she understood half of the comment she thrown at her anyway. Ladybug threw her yoyo up in the air:

"Lucky Charm!"

An explosion of Ladybugs revealed a spray bottle floating down. Immediately Ladybug heard a yelp from Chat and, thinking he wasn't hurt, pivoted and ran towards him, only to see him running away from her.

"What's wrong kitty? Afraid of a little water, are we?" She taunted. Chat said nothing but instead ran around to the backside to distract Grace for a moment. Ladybug smiled and analyzed the scene before her, and knew exactly what she's had to do. She twisted the nozzle and jumped toward the akuma. Luckily Chat had Grace's full attention from the front, so Ladybug landed effortlessly among the quarreling students. At first she thought that tying and separating them away from Chloe, but the bottle in her left hand hinted at another solution. Her Ladybug vision showed a connection to the crowd, highlighting the faces of her classmates. Without a second thought she squirted the nearest student with a face full of water. She immediately sputtered out in the middle of an insult.

"What's the deal?" Alya took her whetted glasses and dried them on her shirt. When she replaced them she gasped as she saw where the water came from. "Ladybug! What's going on?"

"There's no time to explain. Take this and wake up everyone else, then try and see if you can subdue Grace. I've gotten to help-" no sooner had she handed the bright red bottle to Alya than did she hear a loud thud followed by a grunt. It seemed that Grace had finally caught up with the swift kitten, smacking him into the wall. Chat raised his head meekly, clearly hurting from all the combat. He feebly raised his arms to shield himself but from Graces next fatal blow, but a red force moved in front of him to block it.

"Just in time, Bugaboo."

"As always," she was about to comment about his stamina, or lack thereof, when the other whip slammed into her, throwing her across the gym. She rolled several times before coming to rest on her stomach with a groan. She pushed herself to her knees, scanning the room for the akuma. Alya had apparently freed most if not all of the students, and was now leading them in a charge against Grace. Chloe was lying in the feeble position on the floor, Sabrina by her side. Several students were now trying to drag her down by her limbs, to no avail. The power she had gained from their negativity had increased her strength far beyond what a normal akuma's should have been. Ladybug was about to rejoin Chat but a loud beeping from her earrings told her she only had a minute left. She sighed regretfully and launched up to the top balcony to transform. No sooner had she stuffed Tikki into her bad win a cookie did she feel her foot snagged on something. Expecting it to be caught in the handrail, she turned slowly only to find a half of the purple jump rope tightly wound around her ankle. She reached back to undo the strap, but it suddenly pulled her off the catwalk and onto the floor below. Marinette let out a deep groan as the whip slowly pulled her back towards Grace, who was now flying high above the gymnasium. Many of the kids yelled to Marinette, but with no Chat Noir in sight, there was nothing that could be done. Grace lifted Marinette up, using the other ropes to slowly twine around her legs.

"It looks like one of the little girlies has evaded my trap." Grace allowed the rope to sink its power into Marinette, "let's see how you like this one."

She let Marinette fall, but Chat jumped from out of nowhere to grab her limp body. He tried to awaken her from her placid state but was met only with dead eyes. He was just about to rush her to safety when her eyes burst open, burning with rage. Chat, frightened, dropped her, though she caught herself on his arm. He tried to grab her again but she pushed past him and all the students to where Chloe now lay panting in Sabrina's arms. One look was enough to get Sabrina to push the blonde away, leaving her at full mercy to Marinette.

"Chloe Bourgeois," Marinette brushed a stray piece of hair behind her ear, "what are we going to do with you?"

"Marinette it's about time. Everyone is being so mean to me." Chloe allowed Marinette to help her to her feet only to find her being pushed face first into the rough carpet.

"You have pushed people around all your life, now I think it's only fair you get what's coming to," Chloe scampered backwards, but Marinette easily outpaced her, "I can't believe that after all the advantages you been given in life you still believe that you need to take advantage of others. You abuse poor Sabrina daily, never even realizing that's if she abandoned you for any decent person you would be left completely on your own. You have managed to treat everyone's you've come into contact with so poorly that you've isolated yourself from any and all help. Your own stupidity has grown to insurpassable amounts, making each and every action you perform an act of idiocy. The only reason why anyone's would even consider helping you would be out of pity, not as a friend. Chat Noir and ladybug only save when the house absolutely have to, but the house don't actually care about you. You're just a selfish dumb blonde with no sense of moral judgement whose highest achievement so far has been creating a kingdom for yourself, one based off of lies and egomania to the point of isolation from all human contact. You're a stuck up heir of a hotel manager who will never amount to anything you retarded waste of space; and I would even go so far as to call you, Chloe, a complete bitc-"

Marinette smiled ranting was cut off by a sharp spray of water to her face. She felt a massively power sweep her off her feet. She wiped streams of water from her eyes, letting her eyes adjust. She found herself placed upon the catwalk with her favorite cat in front of her, arms tightly gripped around on her shoulders.

"Marinette," he pierced her eyes with his sharp emeralds, "are you okay after that? And must we always meet when you're in danger, it's quite exhausting? Although It must've felt pretty go isn't to get that off your chest."

"What...what do you mean?" Marinette shifted her eyes, unable to meet his gaze knowing exactly what she had just said.

"It must be part of the akuma magic," Chat said to himself, nervously glancing behind him to view the fleeing pupils dodge the akuma's attacks. "Ask Adrien about it later, he saw the whole thing."

"Really?" Marinette lowered her head in shame.

"Hey, don't sweat it, he'll understand that it was all just a part of the akuma, not that you actually have those feelings towards Chloe, do you?"

The two heard a massive rash behind them, distracting Chat again. "Just stay here away from the fighting, I'll come check on you to make sure you're safe."

Before she could mumble a reply he hadn't dived back dived to the battleground. Marinette was lost in thought over the awful things she's had said when a nudging from her purse drew her attention.

"Marinette, I'm already!" Tikki called, stirring her from her stupor. Chat would fare well against the akuma for now, but Ladybug was the only one who could save Grace.

"Tikki, spots on!"

Ladybug flew into action just in time to see Grace finally catch Chat with one of her whips. He called out for her, but there would be no intercepting Graces next blow. She thought for a moment before realizing that her lucky charm was lying discarded on the floor beneath him. She considered summoning another object, but she couldn't risk any time before the akuma finished Chat; at least, before realizing that she wasn't the only one with a Miraculous.

"Chat! Use Cataclysm!"

He looked confused at first, then caught on to her meaning. He yelled out with black claws and broke free of her grasp just before the other rope sailed over his head. He reached up with *snicker* catlike reflexes and grabbed it in passing, slowly reforming but the material. After it had broken away Grace lashed out with her other hand only to find it broken at Chats hand. The broken rope discarded a glowing akuma, which Ladybug quickly de-evilized.

"Pound it."

Grace soon returned to normal and Ladybug went over to comfort her.

"I know Chloe can be a little frustrating, but believe me that hurting her like she's hurt you will only make you feel worse about yourself."

The small girl nodded, almost in tears. Ladybug turned around to see Chat gazing up at the far end balcony.

"Did you see something, kitty?"

"No it's just...uh...the…well…"

"Well clearly the you has got your tongue, but I hope to see you next time. Bug out." Ladybug yoyo'd to the rooftop and flew out immediately swinging down the side of the school to reenter from an upper floor classroom. She dived through and transformed leaving Marinette to walk out. There she found Chat anxiously looking around.

"Looking for something?"

"More like someone." He said running to her and wrapping her in a massive hug. "I'm glad you're safe."

_.

Thanks so much for reading, and don't forget to share with your friends if you really enjoyed it!


	8. Chapter 8

It's amazing what you can accomplish when your schedule frees up a little bit! Thanks everyone for the support and I'm glad that you're enjoying it, especially cuz we've now been seen in over 50 countries with almost 4,000 views! You really don't know how much this means to me guys and I'm truly going to dedicate myself to making new chapters. Once again I apologize for any errors due to auto-correct, but I'm getting some free time so this chapter should be much cleaner. One final update, and I know you'll probably hate me for it, but do to some personal stuff I'm not going to be updating as much as I would like. Expect probably one or two a week moving ahead, plus I won't be able to post over Spring Break due to vacation. Hope you like it and love ya!

_.

After a comfortable moment of silence, Chat reluctantly pushed Marinette away.

"Uh, yeah...I was just really worried about you."

"Is that all kitty? Or where you hoping to find a hidden Ladybug up here."

"That is beside the point!" Chat crossed his arms in defiance, but quickly melted into a much more protective stance. "No, I really just wanted to tell you that I'm going to drop by your place at about 8 tonight, just to make sure everything's okay."

"Chat, I told you earlier, you don't need to-" She was ignored as he ran to the classroom window, now open due to Marinette's entrance, and perched himself on the sill. The glowing morning sunlight lit up his costume to reveal the sparkling navy accessory he now wore.

"It is my duty as a superhero to upheld my promise to you." He winked one of his startling green eyes at her, "I will protect you."

She tried to say something but Chat saluted her before throwing himself out. Marinette had to physically restrain herself from joining him, but the clanging of a bell warned her of her impending tardiness. She turned around and advanced towards the courtyard, hearing the explosion of noise. The students were congregated in groups of two or three, all consoling each other about the accusations made earlier. The true victim, however, was gently crying into Sabrina's shamed arms. Sabrina was lightly stroking the blonde's hair, but it was clear she had mixed emotions about what had happened. Marinette was sure that she felt guilt for enjoying the humiliation, but also longed for the excitement the akuma brought upon her friend. As Marinette slowly approached the two, Sabrina's expression hardened into a scowl.

"Chloe, I just want to say I-"

"Haven't you done enough, Cheng?" Sabrina snapped, jerking Chloe away from the aggressor. "Chloe is already hurt, you don't need to attack her anymore."

"No it's not that...I just want to apologize...please Chloe." Marinette waited for a response before Sabrina gave one for her.

"She doesn't want to talk to you, and I'm sure you know why. Now if you excuse me-"

"Wait, Sabrina...Let me talk to her." Sabrina gasped and let go of Chloe, who immediately turned on Marinette. She took a few drunken steps towards the black-haired girl before collapsing into her arms. She bitterly sobbed, completely ruining the shoulders on Marinette's jacket.

"Chloe, I am so sorry for what I said. I guess part of it was the akuma, but I have to take some of the blame as well. It was because of the akuma that my innermost frustrations were torn out and you had to take the brunt of that. I never meant you any actual harm, and now beg for your forgiveness. Please, Chloe...I'm sorry."

Chloe continued a steady stream of tears for several more labored breathes before nodding slowly. Marinette smile and sunk to her knees, feeling the adrenaline of the fight leave her, and the fatigue of school life settle in. No matter what happened for the rest of the day, it was going to be a long and drawn out process. Eventually the individual trios and duos moved toward the scene, creating a circle around the two girls. No one said anything as Marinette reached into her pocket and drew out a handkerchief to wipe away the mess of sorrow on Chloe's face. She was in the middle of repairing the damaged mascara when a voice was heard from the back of the crowd.

"What is going on? Please let me through...excuse me." Adrien pushed his way deeper into the circle before stumbling in on the bizarre scene. He looked dumbfounded at the two for a minute before bursting into a fit of laughter. "Is that Marinette helping Chloe with her makeup? Now I've seen everything."

The entirety of the student body laughed, a needed relief to the tension that had swelled within the commons. Marinette released a weak smile and gazed back at Chloe. Although disheveled and more or less a little mentally scared, she seemed to be adapting to the new circumstances. The two helped each other to their feet before leading the class back to the upper floor.

_.

The rest of the day passed in relative calmness, beside a minor disturbance between Alex and Kim concerning some dare. Adrien sat in his seat in a comfortable position, anxiously waiting the end of school. Although he had fought his father so furiously to go to school, he still was a kid. And this kid wanted to be free of the confinements of a desk for a few hours. His leg bobbed up and down, signaling the sugar rush lunch had brought had finally arrived, but the final minutes of class seemed to drag into centuries in the passing seconds. Nino had already fallen asleep, leaving Adrien without a source of distraction. He had already attempted a nap but the excitement of the attack earlier had awakened his senses for the time being. He even considered snatching Plagg out of his bag for entertainment when Madame Bustier made a final announcement for the class.

"Remember to use these formulas on the homework tonight, as the last Physics assignment I graded for this class was clearly done in a last minute. Pupils, I do have one last thing to say before I turn you loose. Due to the stress of life and school that we know our students feel, the administration has decided to offer a relief course for anyone that would like some stress reduction. After school tomorrow, we shall be hosting a little yoga just for your grade, to try and relieve the burden that so many of you feel. We highly implore you to attend, but attendance is not mandatory."

The class burst into a burble of excitement before the bell finally rang. Nino awoke to the clatter of voices all around, clearly in a state of confusion.

"What's going on?" He said with a yawn.

"Apparently there's going to be a yoga thing after school tomorrow." Alya bounded down the steps and sat on the desk in front of Nino.

"I think it's gonna be a big help, especially with so many exams coming up." Marinette said, gathering her and Ayla's things from their conjoined desk.

Adrien slipped his textbooks into his bag before responding, "I think it's going to be really fun! I just hope my dad will let me go."

"Don't sweat it dude. There's no way your old man is gonna turn down a stress relief for his son."

The four made their way down to the commons and out the front door. Although the day had been bright and sunny, the overcast that had settled was hinting at rain later. Alya and Marinette exchanged nervous looks before bidding farewell to the boys. Nino waved at them and signaled a goodbye to Adrien before making his way to his car. Adrien took a seat on the steps, eagerly waiting the arrival of his assistant. If all went according to plan, he could probably convince her that it would be beneficial for him. Finally the black limousine pulled up, the passenger window unrolling to reveal a stern face nearly pressed into the tablet in her hands.

"Adrien we are late! The traffic today has been astounding and you're father is none too pleased about the new fabrics he ordered for today's photo shoot. Unfortunately we may have to reschedule!"

All of this passed over Adrien in a wave, washing over him without truly taking any root inside his head. He climbed into the car before taking out his phone. A few taps later and he was mindlessly scrolling on some social media outlet. In between likes and reposts he heard intertwined bits pf Nathalie's ranting, most of the off shades of mauve and how they clashes with lilac just enough to ruin the entire collaboration. However, after a long interlude of silence he realized that she had asked a question.

"Yes...erm...come again?"

"Honestly Adrien, how do you expect to be prepared to take over your fathers business if you don't even have the simple understanding of listening and understanding your clientele?"

He murmured an excuse but she continued with her lecture.

"Now I will be at your school to pick you up just after the final bell rings, any tardiness will not be permitted. Am I understood?"

Adrien absentmindedly shook his head, confirming Nathalie's question. He continued to dawdle on his phone the entire ride home, ignoring all of her instruction on proper business handling. When they finally reached the Agreste Manor, Adrien raced to his room, aiming to complete his homework before he set out to check on Marinette. However, as soon as he set out his school bags and assignments, He received a text from Nino.

 _Dude, I heard that you got the new Ultimate Meta Strike. Think I could try it out?!_

Adrien smiled and texted back an affirmation that he had the game and that Nino could come try it out. Adrien set aside his homework and booted up his game system, deciding to practice a bit before he arrived. Adrien had completed several A-I battles before Nino arrived, clearly giving him the advantage with the new moves and techniques. They settled into a groove, pausing only for a snack break several hours into the process, unaware of the setting sun in the distance.

_.

Marinette sat on her bed, her unfinished Physics worksheet sitting in front of her. In her lap sat her phone, incessantly buzzing notifications from Alya. Apparently she had tried to text Nino about a date idea she had, to no response after several worried texts and more than her fair share of phone calls, she had turned to Marinette as a final resort. Marinette tried to soothe her fears claiming that he was probably playing video games or something, but it fell on deaf ears. She continued to text Marinette for well over an hour, letting the sun set and twilight start to settle in. Marinette was just growing bored pf the distractions when she heard a sharp rapping on her window. She texted a farewell to Alya, just in time to see a text stating that Nino had just been playing video games with Adrien all afternoon. Marinette smiled and shook her head then made her way to the balcony door. She opened it to find a tall slender cat staring at the rising moon.

"You're here late." Marinette playfully lectured, enjoying the startle that she gave him. He turned around to give some excuse but instead invited himself in to snoop around her room. She exclaimed in protest but the Chat moved silently around the room, frantically scanning for any enemies in her wardrobe. After several minutes of silent searching, Chat nodded his approval. Marinette laughed at his antics, and gestured towards the bed. Chat let out a yelp before Marinette blushed deeply.

"Not like that you creep." Marinette chuckled, internally cursing herself for her innuendo. She made her way to her bed, ignoring the deep blush that still held Chat's face. After she had settled in, Chat finally followed, though choosing to position himself over by the window. She smiled as he faux paw as a guard but tuned her mind into a homework state. She tried several times to continue her work, but each time Chat distracted with superfluous questions about her safety.

"Marinette, how am I to protect you if I don't know where the danger is?"

"I don't know, cat, but I've got work to do. Now if you don't mind I would rather not answer a 20 Questions with you."

"I know, but I swore to protect you and I will do it to my best ability. Trust me I am a man of my word." Chat thought about earlier how he said a very similar thing to Nino before kicking him out. Adrien had realized how late it was getting before remembering his promise to Marinette, leading to a very awkward goodbye to Nino and a promise they would play the new game again. He smirked at the thought of Nino's confused expression as Adrien escorted him out of the manor before transforming and launching himself into the night.

"That's very nice, now unless you can help me figure out my physics worksheet, please be quiet!" Marinette snapped as she finished another problem. In response to the sudden silence she gazed up at Chat Noir, who had turned as white as a sheet. "And what's wrong with you?"

"We had physics homework?!"

Marinette was about to reply with some sarcastic response when she realized what he had just let slip.

"You're a student?!" Marinette sat up, letting her papers fall to the ground. "And possibly in my physics classroom?"

"Uh...no...erm...uh...You know it's getting really late and I need to get going to finish my...uh...thing...for a teacher that certainly isn't Madame Bustier. Uh...Bye Marinette!"

Before Marinette could utter a rejection Chat had ran out the balcony door and dived into the night.

 _Chat Noir not only is my age...but he's possibly in one of my classes!_ Marinette thought to herself as she grabbed her phone.

Alya certainly would love to hear about this new development.

_.

Hey guys hope you liked it! I'm really really sorry for the delay but with AP tests coming up and end of year exams I am swamped...So I'm proposing a solution. I can either make one or two really long and detailed chapters like I have been doing a week, or I can do four or five really short mini chapters until Summer Break starts. Leave a review or just PM what you think I should. Love Ya and thanks for all the support!


	9. Chapter 9

Hey thanks for being patient with me! Sorry for the short chapter but its all I could write being as busy as I am. Spring Break was awesome and I came back to a ton of new views and reviews so thank you! Just a heads up over vacay I saw a ton of different LadyNoir headcanons and really want to change them and put them in my own adaptation, so I hope you enjoy!

Even though the night was waning and Marinette still had quite a load of homework to unload, her texting conversation with Alya took over all of her focus. As obsessed with Ladybug and her identity as Alya was, Marinette knew she would enjoy hearing some hint as to the identity of her partner.

 _Are you seriously trying to tell me the Chat Noir is in our class? I dont know girl_

Marinette smiled to herself, texting back a firm confirmation. As she was reading the next text however, Tikki sprung out of her bag and flew in front of Marinette.

"Marinette, don't you know what this means?"

"Yeah Tikki, I'm this much closer to finding out who my partner in crime...er...fighting crime, is!"

"Not just that, but didn't you notice how odd Chat was acting? Normally he's all suave and charming but he's dropping his guard around you. Whatever you've been doing is clearly having an effect on him."

Marinette simply blushed, thinking back to the previous night. The cold night air, his warm body pressed against hers in passionate embrace. The graceful brushing of his lips on-

She stopped mid though as she felt a sharp pain pull from her head. She snatched her hair back from Tikki, who clearly desired some attention.

"Marinette, honestly, you have the attention span of a squirrel."

"I do not!" Marinette replied indignantly, "Well...maybe of a cute squirrel."

"Listen Marinette, you're free to do whatever you want, but let me make a suggestion. I may just be a kwami but I can tell when someone likes someone else. If I were you I'd use this to exploit Chat's identity."

"Really Tikki? I would think you out of everyone would want to keep both our identities a secret."

"Normally I would, but I fear something else is coming. I'm able to sense good luck and lately I feel like Chat's is somehow decreasing. It might be paramount for you to at least try and get closer to him."

"Yeah...I getcha...but I dunno. I don't think it sounds like a very good idea."

"You probably don't, but please-as a favor to me."

"But-"

"Marinette I never ask anything of you...just try and do this one thing for me..." Tikki pleaded. "Please?"

"Oh..." Marinette thought about it for a moment before replying, "Alright...only for you Tikki."

The red kwami squealed with delight and flipped over herself in the air. "Thank you Marinette! You don't know how much this means to me."

Marinette smiled at her outburst, but held some doubt in her mind. As happy as Tikki seemed she couldn't help but notice the suspicious antics of her kwami sidekick. Normally she was so conservative, and Marinette even recalled how Tikki had just days ago warned her of getting close...What could have changed her mind?

 _What do you have to gain from this, little friend?_

As much of a model as Adrien Agreste was in the daylight hours, nothing he did prepared him for the morning disaster he always became. Somewhere between twilight and dawn break he transformed from a handsome creature of the night to a ghastly apparition. He rubbed his eyes as he stood in front of the mirror, evaluating the night's damage. His hair stood up in all directions, giving him a faux afro of blonde fuzz. His eyes were crusted over, and he noted the noticeable dry trail of drool in the corner of his mouth. His pajamas were slouched over one shoulder, and he could tell that he needed a shower before school. Sighing he started the shower, increasing the heat to as hot as his body would allow. Slipping out of his clothes he clambered in, mind still foggy from sleep or lack thereof. He had raced home after his slip up with Marinette complaining to Plagg the entire time.

"Plagg that's it! I'm not going to school tomorrow."

"Dude that's not realistic-"

"Nope my life's over...if I go today the she'll recognize me!"

"You've gone all year without anyone suspecting you, why should now be any different?"

"Because...reasons."

"Very convincing arguement."

The rest of the night passed in silence as Chat tried to justify what he had done. He was sure that Plagg had a point but it didnt seem right that Marinette now knew a little bit about his personal life. Luckily fatigue settled in both him and Plagg as soon as Chat transformed back st the Agreste manor, leading him to complete his homework (though not very well) Even now Adrien felt the pain of sleep depravation. He slowly showered using only minimal effort to dry himself off afterwards. He practically crawled out of the bathroom to get dressed, where Plagg was already happily chowing down on Camembert.

"Dude you know how hard it is to get the stench out of my clothes...could you at least try and eat it outside my closet?"

"But it's the comfiest place to eat cheese! It's dark and seeded and it captures the aroma so nicely."

Adrien wasn't sure if one could get high off cheese but if anyone was to do it, it would be Plagg. Adrien plugged his nose as he reached past the black kwami, gagging al little when he caught a whiff of his closet. Normally he'd have his clothes aired out but he just didn't have the time before school began. He picked out a shirt that didn't smell too bad and slipped it on, letting Plagg fly in just in time before shutting the door. Grabbing his backpack he raced out the door, eager to escape the wafting aroma of cheesy bacteria. He stepped past his breakfast, which was set on the usual silver platters outside his room. Normally he makes an effort to eat breakfast, especially on days _where he knew it was most likely the only meal he'd have time for. However his_ shower had taken up most of his time. A brief honking of a car horn outside alerted him to just how late he actually was. If Nathalie had already arranged for a driver to pick him up, he likely would be hard-pressed for time. In fact, the bespectacled woman was appeared behind him, already actively lecturing him on the virtue of punctuality.

Adrien effectively ignored her, letting her not so friendly parental advice wash over him. He briskly walked to the car, not bothering to look behind him at the trailing assistance. The limousine ride was filled with Nathalie's talking, with Adrien distracting himself with the sights of Paris. Just before he hopped out of the car, she finally wrapped her ramblings up with a single instruction:

"Do not be late after school. There isn't any time to waste with your usual antics."

"Yeah, sure whatever." Adrien grabbed his backpack and slammed the door behind him. Running up the steps he felt a sudden wave of anxiety rise within, but couldn't quite place what he was forgetting. Absolving himself that it would make itself known he stepped into the school building, letting the familiarity of school soothe his fears.

_.

Guys I am so sorry for the lack of updates. Finals are starting and between homework and work I have almost no time for important things (Like sleep and fanfiction) Please forgive me but after the AP test of Fri I should go back to publishing one or two really good updates a week.


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